Making the change to brown rice

Making permanent healthy changes to our diet can be a difficult task but with a little bit of experimenting it doesn't have to be a painful one. For the sake of our health my husband and I have tried really hard to make these changes and what we have discovered is that it doesn't have to be something that you struggle with. There are some wonderful healthy foods out there that make for wonderful substitutes to things that you already love.

Making the final switch to brown rice was very frustrating for me. It never seemed to cook right and I didn't think it always worked with my Asian or Indian dishes. I got myself to the point that I would have brown rice in the house but would use my white rice for certain dishes that I felt were not interchangeable with the new grain. Because I grew up in Asia, rice was just one of those integral ingredients of my life that I was just not wiling to sacrifice, so if it didn't taste right I didn't bother.  Then about two months ago my life change, while restocking my pantry I discovered at the store Brown Jasmine Rice and Brown Basmati Rice. And what a blessing that discovery has been. Because I think the change to healthy eating has to be enjoyable other wise you will never stick to it. Taste and texture are important in good food and one of the problems that I had with brown rice is would turn out chewy and watery. So I started doing more research into it and began to tweek the way I cooked it.  After many attempts I finally came up with a method that has become fail proof for myself. 

Southwest Turkey Chili

One of the biggest budget killers is eating out. We try not to do it but there are days that you just don't feel like cooking. Maybe you had a bad day or you are just exhausted, what ever the reason on those days it is really easy to convince yourself to go out. I know I am guilty of that and so today I am trying to find ways to plan for those days. The biggest thing is making sure that you have items in the house that are easy to throw together so they don't take much effort. I might have a meal plan for the week already but I don't know ahead of time how the day is going to be. And sometimes what was planned for would take way more effort that I can put into. So this afternoon I created a backup plan, Southwest Turkey Chili. You see the great thing about chili is that it freezes really well. This recipe is so easy and once it is done I simply let it cool and put portions in freezer bags and wallah, dinner for those dreaded lazy days.